Nights at the Circus

At first my initial thoughts were similar to most people in the class... this book is going to be really hard to get through. However, as I slowly progressed through the it and understood some of the underlying themes, it became quite interesting.

Angela Carter does a fascinating job at portraying the image of a "new women". Fevvers, in some sense is shown as the Savior of women. In book 1, she is presented as the angel who has been sent down to help the whores. Her difference as a women is what makes her a powerful feminist character.


Also, I really liked the portrayal of the circus in the novel. The circus is shown as a way for people to come and find an escape from their problems. They not only want to escape from their problems but want an escape from the everyday problems that the "filthy" world has to offer, as Buffo puts it. The circus becomes a world of it's own, where people are allowed to be different, whether there playing the role or are born in to it. "Under these impenetrable disguises of wet white, you might find, were you to look, the features of those who were once proud to be visible." (Carter 138) As someone else mentioned in their post, I really enjoyed Book II and the "sermon" Buffo presents. This is what makes the book really interesting... although the plot is quite confusing at times, the things the characters have to say are quite captivating.